Colorado University Athletics
Monday, February 17
La Quinta, Calif.
All Day
Colorado
vs
First Round
Ty Holbrook is in second place in The Prestige Individual, a companion event with The Prestige At PGA West
Photo by: Juan DeLeon Creative
Golfers Open Spring in Tie For 10th at The Prestige At PGA West
February 17, 2025 | Men's Golf
Swanson tied for sixth in main event; Holbrook tied for second in companion meet
LA QUINTA, Calif. -- The University of Colorado men's golf team started in a blaze of glory but self-extinguished its own hot start in settling into a tie for 10th place after the first round here Monday in the 26th Annual "The Prestige at PGA West."
No. 6 North Carolina emerged as the day one leader with a 9-under par team score of 275, which is good for a three-shot lead over No. 46 Kansas (278). No. 64 San Diego is in third (281), with No. 34 Oregon, Florida Atlantic and UNC-Wilmington all tied for fourth (282).
No. 36 Colorado is tied for 10th with No. 23 and defending champion Texas Tech and No. 65 Kansas State with an even-par 288, but the at began much brighter for the Buffaloes.
The Buffs started to make the turn at 4-under, and zoomed up to 10-under at one point and held a three stroke lead going into the final three holes, after scoring eight birdies and 16 pars with a double on the first five holes of the back nine. But Nos. 16 (par-5, 567 yards) and 18 (par-4, 461) proved to be costly for CU, as the Buff quintet scored four bogeys and two doubles with just four pars that dropped their overall score to even-par. When the dozen schools that had morning tee times were finish, Colorado slipped into fifth place, but just four strokes behind the leader in the clubhouse, San Diego.
Tuesday should prove to be a separation day, as just nine strokes separate 18 teams from third through a four-way tie for 17th. Eight of the nation's top 45 teams are in that logjam, as are 14 of the top 76 in the latest Scoreboard rankings. The Buffs are very much in the mix, just three shots back of third and nine out of the lead, especially considering it had one of the better starts Monday. The holes that gave CU the most trouble Monday will be in the middle of the round Tuesday.
"We had a lot of good golf from everyone today," head coach Roy Edwards said. "We were on the verge of a really good round but let a few shots get away that we normally don't. Afterward, we had a good meeting and practice and are ready for a good one tomorrow."
Junior Hunter Swanson led the Buffaloes on Monday, as he fired a 3-under 68 on the 7,129-yard, par-71 PGA West Greg Norman Course; that has him tied for sixth. He had a team-high five birdies with 11 pars and only two bogeys on his day, which started with one of his birds on No. 1. It was his eighth round in the 60s this season.
Senior Freddy Eisenbeis turned in an even-par score of 71, tying him for 40th. He had a steady round of two birdies, a team-high 14 pars and just two bogeys. He played both nines even, as he was on the four par-3 holes, playing the par-4's at 1-over and the three par-5's at 1-under. It was his 11 round of par or better out of the 13 on the season.
Senior Dylan McDermott is tied for 53rd, but saw his school record streak of 15 straight rounds of par or better come to an end in near-heartbreaking fashion, as he posted a 1-over 72. At one point, he was 4-under par on the day after back-to-back birdies on Nos. 11 and 12, but he came back down to Earth on the last six holes, which included closing with a double bogey on the 18th that made him finish from red numbers into the unhappy side of par for the round. He played the par-5's at 1-under and the par-4's even, and had four birdies and 11 pars.
Senior Justin Biwer fashioned a 2-over 73 that has him tied for 66th; he had two birdies and 13 pars with two bogeys and a double to open up the spring. After bogeying No. 2, a 499-yard, par-4, he birdied Nos. 4 and 8 to get to 1-under, which he then maintained for the next six holes. He then bogeyed No. 15 before doubling No. 16 but rallied to close with two pars. He was the only Buff to play the par-3's in the red (1-under) Monday.
Freshman Michael Fang is tied for 78th after wrapping his first collegiate round as a designated scorer with a 3-over 74. He had four birdies and eight pars opposite five bogeys and a double, his high scores bookending his low ones. He opened his round with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 1 and 2, and was 3-over through seven; he then birdied four of his next seven holes to get into the red at 1-under, but closed with bogey-bogey-double-par to slip back to plus-3.
There's a three-way tie atop the leaderboard after 18 holes, as Oregon's Aiden Kraft, Kansas State's Kobe Valociek and North Carolina's David Ford all fired 5-under 66 scores. There were 23 rounds in the 60's on Monday, so it's crowded atop the individual standings.
The second round is scheduled for Tuesday, with the Buffaloes again paired with No. 31 Northwestern and co-host UC Davis, starting on the No. 10 tee at Noon Pacific time.
THE PRESTIGE INDIVIDUAL: Sophomore Ty Holbrook is participating here in the companion event, The Prestige Individual, in nearby Indio at the Golf Club at Terra Lago North. He is in second after the first round, carding a 4-under 68 on the 7,060-yard, par-72 course, one back of North Carolina's Sihan Sandhu. Holbrook had an eagle – his fourth of the season which is second-most on the team – five birdies and nine pars against three bogeys. It was his fifth subpar round and third score in the 60s on the year. He will tee off for his second round on the No. 1 tee with Sandhu and Arkansas-Little Rock's Ed Featherstone at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.
SOCO INTERCOLLEGIATE: The one-day event at Walking Stick Golf Course that had individuals competing from four area schools – CU, Colorado Mines, Otero College and host CSU Pueblo was reduced to a 9-hole unofficial event due to snow remaining on several greens with temperatures only warming into the low 40's. CU senior Jack Holland posted the low score, a 3-under 33, with sophomore Brandon Knight tying for second (1-under 35) and freshman Parker Paxton recording a 2-over 38 (tying for sixth-best out of the 27 who competed); senior Tucker Clark withdrew as he was still nursing a back injury, as did the entire Colorado Mesa team which canceled due to the heavy snow in the mountains that restricted travel.
NOTES: The weather was near perfect, with temperatures in the upper 70's and sunny skies; the winds never picked up dramatically (5-7 miles per hour at the most) … CU had five top three finishes in the fall season (one win, three runner-ups and a third), its best fall season in history, with 13 of the 15 rounds subpar and a 14th even; the 14th in red of the season on Monday is now tied for the sixth-most in school history … CU's 288 team score tied for the ninth best to open the spring season; of the eight subpar scores, six were at the "user-friendly" courses in Hawaii for Hilo's Amer Ari Invitational … The average score for 120 rounds Monday was 72.53; there are 36 players under par (19 though at just minus-1) and another 13 in at even … There were a combined four double bogeys between the 240 holes played on Nos. 16 and 18 Monday – CU had two of those … The Buffaloes had one eagle, 22 birdies and 51 pars, with 16 holes of bogey (12) or worse (four doubles) … Colorado also played the par-3's 3-over, the par-4's at 1-over and the par-5's at 5-under … Former CU coach, the late Mark Simpson, helped create the tournament back in 2000, at first for some of the best academic schools in the nation … This is the 12th time the Buffaloes are playing in the event. Colorado has three top five finishes in The Prestige, its best a second place effort in 2001 when it was held in the fall (281-288-280—849, -15); Washington won that year with an 844 total … Joe Liley finished third that year (69-70-68—207, -9), CU's best individual finish here.
No. 6 North Carolina emerged as the day one leader with a 9-under par team score of 275, which is good for a three-shot lead over No. 46 Kansas (278). No. 64 San Diego is in third (281), with No. 34 Oregon, Florida Atlantic and UNC-Wilmington all tied for fourth (282).
No. 36 Colorado is tied for 10th with No. 23 and defending champion Texas Tech and No. 65 Kansas State with an even-par 288, but the at began much brighter for the Buffaloes.
The Buffs started to make the turn at 4-under, and zoomed up to 10-under at one point and held a three stroke lead going into the final three holes, after scoring eight birdies and 16 pars with a double on the first five holes of the back nine. But Nos. 16 (par-5, 567 yards) and 18 (par-4, 461) proved to be costly for CU, as the Buff quintet scored four bogeys and two doubles with just four pars that dropped their overall score to even-par. When the dozen schools that had morning tee times were finish, Colorado slipped into fifth place, but just four strokes behind the leader in the clubhouse, San Diego.
Tuesday should prove to be a separation day, as just nine strokes separate 18 teams from third through a four-way tie for 17th. Eight of the nation's top 45 teams are in that logjam, as are 14 of the top 76 in the latest Scoreboard rankings. The Buffs are very much in the mix, just three shots back of third and nine out of the lead, especially considering it had one of the better starts Monday. The holes that gave CU the most trouble Monday will be in the middle of the round Tuesday.
"We had a lot of good golf from everyone today," head coach Roy Edwards said. "We were on the verge of a really good round but let a few shots get away that we normally don't. Afterward, we had a good meeting and practice and are ready for a good one tomorrow."
Junior Hunter Swanson led the Buffaloes on Monday, as he fired a 3-under 68 on the 7,129-yard, par-71 PGA West Greg Norman Course; that has him tied for sixth. He had a team-high five birdies with 11 pars and only two bogeys on his day, which started with one of his birds on No. 1. It was his eighth round in the 60s this season.
Senior Freddy Eisenbeis turned in an even-par score of 71, tying him for 40th. He had a steady round of two birdies, a team-high 14 pars and just two bogeys. He played both nines even, as he was on the four par-3 holes, playing the par-4's at 1-over and the three par-5's at 1-under. It was his 11 round of par or better out of the 13 on the season.
Senior Dylan McDermott is tied for 53rd, but saw his school record streak of 15 straight rounds of par or better come to an end in near-heartbreaking fashion, as he posted a 1-over 72. At one point, he was 4-under par on the day after back-to-back birdies on Nos. 11 and 12, but he came back down to Earth on the last six holes, which included closing with a double bogey on the 18th that made him finish from red numbers into the unhappy side of par for the round. He played the par-5's at 1-under and the par-4's even, and had four birdies and 11 pars.
Senior Justin Biwer fashioned a 2-over 73 that has him tied for 66th; he had two birdies and 13 pars with two bogeys and a double to open up the spring. After bogeying No. 2, a 499-yard, par-4, he birdied Nos. 4 and 8 to get to 1-under, which he then maintained for the next six holes. He then bogeyed No. 15 before doubling No. 16 but rallied to close with two pars. He was the only Buff to play the par-3's in the red (1-under) Monday.
Freshman Michael Fang is tied for 78th after wrapping his first collegiate round as a designated scorer with a 3-over 74. He had four birdies and eight pars opposite five bogeys and a double, his high scores bookending his low ones. He opened his round with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 1 and 2, and was 3-over through seven; he then birdied four of his next seven holes to get into the red at 1-under, but closed with bogey-bogey-double-par to slip back to plus-3.
There's a three-way tie atop the leaderboard after 18 holes, as Oregon's Aiden Kraft, Kansas State's Kobe Valociek and North Carolina's David Ford all fired 5-under 66 scores. There were 23 rounds in the 60's on Monday, so it's crowded atop the individual standings.
The second round is scheduled for Tuesday, with the Buffaloes again paired with No. 31 Northwestern and co-host UC Davis, starting on the No. 10 tee at Noon Pacific time.
THE PRESTIGE INDIVIDUAL: Sophomore Ty Holbrook is participating here in the companion event, The Prestige Individual, in nearby Indio at the Golf Club at Terra Lago North. He is in second after the first round, carding a 4-under 68 on the 7,060-yard, par-72 course, one back of North Carolina's Sihan Sandhu. Holbrook had an eagle – his fourth of the season which is second-most on the team – five birdies and nine pars against three bogeys. It was his fifth subpar round and third score in the 60s on the year. He will tee off for his second round on the No. 1 tee with Sandhu and Arkansas-Little Rock's Ed Featherstone at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.
SOCO INTERCOLLEGIATE: The one-day event at Walking Stick Golf Course that had individuals competing from four area schools – CU, Colorado Mines, Otero College and host CSU Pueblo was reduced to a 9-hole unofficial event due to snow remaining on several greens with temperatures only warming into the low 40's. CU senior Jack Holland posted the low score, a 3-under 33, with sophomore Brandon Knight tying for second (1-under 35) and freshman Parker Paxton recording a 2-over 38 (tying for sixth-best out of the 27 who competed); senior Tucker Clark withdrew as he was still nursing a back injury, as did the entire Colorado Mesa team which canceled due to the heavy snow in the mountains that restricted travel.
NOTES: The weather was near perfect, with temperatures in the upper 70's and sunny skies; the winds never picked up dramatically (5-7 miles per hour at the most) … CU had five top three finishes in the fall season (one win, three runner-ups and a third), its best fall season in history, with 13 of the 15 rounds subpar and a 14th even; the 14th in red of the season on Monday is now tied for the sixth-most in school history … CU's 288 team score tied for the ninth best to open the spring season; of the eight subpar scores, six were at the "user-friendly" courses in Hawaii for Hilo's Amer Ari Invitational … The average score for 120 rounds Monday was 72.53; there are 36 players under par (19 though at just minus-1) and another 13 in at even … There were a combined four double bogeys between the 240 holes played on Nos. 16 and 18 Monday – CU had two of those … The Buffaloes had one eagle, 22 birdies and 51 pars, with 16 holes of bogey (12) or worse (four doubles) … Colorado also played the par-3's 3-over, the par-4's at 1-over and the par-5's at 5-under … Former CU coach, the late Mark Simpson, helped create the tournament back in 2000, at first for some of the best academic schools in the nation … This is the 12th time the Buffaloes are playing in the event. Colorado has three top five finishes in The Prestige, its best a second place effort in 2001 when it was held in the fall (281-288-280—849, -15); Washington won that year with an 844 total … Joe Liley finished third that year (69-70-68—207, -9), CU's best individual finish here.
| BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS |
| T6. | Hunter Swanson | 34-34—68 |
| T40. | Freddy Eisenbeis | 35-36—71 |
| T53. | Dylan McDermott | 33-69—72 |
| T66. | Justin Biwer | 34-39—73 |
| T78. | Michael Fang | 37-37—74 |
| INDIVIDUAL LEADERS (PRESTIGE AT PGA WEST) |
| T1. | Aiden Kraft, Oregon | 33-33—66 |
| T1. | Kobe Valociek, Kansas State | 31-35—66 |
| T1. | David Ford, North Carolina | 32-34—66 |
| T4. | Sam Renner, Washington State | 33-34—67 |
| T4. | Colin Hodgkinson, Oregon State | 34-33—67 |
| INDIVIDUAL LEADERS (PRESTIGE INDIVIDUAL) |
| 1. | Sihan Sandhu, North Carolina | 34-33—67 |
| 2. | Ty Holbrook, Colorado | 33-35—68 |
| T3. | Ed Featherstone, Little Rock | 35-35—70 |
| T3. | Logan Kim, Stanford | 37-33—70 |
| T5. | Four tied | 71 |
| TEAM STANDINGS |
| 1. | North Carolina | 275 |
| 2. | Kansas | 278 |
| 3. | San Diego | 281 |
| T4. | UNC Wilmington | 282 |
| T4. | Oregon | 282 |
| T4. | Florida Atlantic | 282 |
| T7. | Northwestern | 283 |
| T7. | Arkansas-Little Rock | 283 |
| T7. | Stanford | 283 |
| T10. | COLORADO | 284 |
| T10. | Texas Tech | 284 |
| T10. | Kansas State | 284 |
| 13. | Colorado State | 285 |
| T14. | Princeton | 286 |
| T14. | Loyola-Marymount | 286 |
| 16. | Iowa State | 289 |
| T17. | Pepperdine | 290 |
| T17. | Nevada | 290 |
| T17. | Oregon State | 290 |
| T17. | Baylor | 290 |
| 21. | UC Davis | 291 |
| 22. | Louisville | 293 |
| 23. | Washington State | 296 |
| 24. | Yale | 298 |
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
Join us for the 15th Annual Colorado Golf Day on August 25 at Boulder Country Club! ⛳
Tuesday, August 12
Buffalo Stampede WEEK 24
Tuesday, February 06
Buffalo Stampede Week 24 TUCKER CLARK
Tuesday, February 06
Afternoon Tee with Matt Thurmond
Monday, June 08